south carolina legislative cock-up

The South Carolina State Senate passed a bill banning gamecock fighting while at the same time tabling a bill protecting victims of domestic violence. That means that domestic violence is a misdemeanor, but cockfighting is set to become a felony. When questioned about this, Rep. John Graham Altman insulted the reporter: “People who compare the …

mathemical proofs for the 21st century

The Economist examines what it means to prove something, and how formal logic and computers can be used to replace traditional mathemtical proofs. Formal proof is a notion developed in the early part of the 20th century by logicians such as Bertrand Russell and Gottlob Frege, along with mathematicians such as David Hilbert (who can …